Disposable absorbent articles, such as diapers, training pants, incontinence garments, feminine hygiene garments and the like have become very popular in the market place today. Typically, adhesive tape tabs fasteners are used to secure the absorbent articles about the waist of the wearer. Such fasteners are generally manufactured separately from the absorbent articles to which they are attached. For example, it is common for the manufacture of tape tabs to take place in different facilities than the manufacture of the absorbent article chassis, and at a different time. Generally, tape tabs are manufactured by applying a release agent to a backing and winding the backing onto a roll. The roll of backing material treated with a release agent is then unwound and coated with pressure-sensitive adhesive, forming a tape stock. The tape stock is then rewound onto rolls for shipping. Finally, at the place of manufacture of the absorbent article, the tape stock is unwound, cut to size, and joined to the chassis of an absorbent article.
An overriding consideration in the construction of a disposable absorbent article is the cost of manufacturing the absorbent article, and thus the cost of manufacturing the tape tabs to be used with the article. The present invention provides a reduced cost tape tab fastener that has been found to work well with disposable absorbent articles. Some of the advantages that make the tape tab of the present invention more desirable and cost effective than tape tabs currently available include the simple process by which the tape tabs may be manufactured, the possibility to manufacture the tape tabs on-line with the article to which they are to be joined and the overall hygiene of the tape tabs during and after the manufacturing process.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved low cost tape tab fastener that may be used with disposable absorbent articles.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide tape tabs with improved processibility and hygiene.
These and other objectives of the present invention will be more readily apparent when considered in reference to the following description and when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.